


Found Peace in Your Violence

by findingblissinignorance



Category: The Old Guard (Movie 2020)
Genre: Joe dealing with the aftermath, M/M, One Shot, Pre-Movie, Protective Nicky, Still a modern setting, Temporary Character Death, i just love their love okay??, i'm never good with tags
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-29
Updated: 2020-07-29
Packaged: 2021-03-05 20:47:00
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,821
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25581562
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/findingblissinignorance/pseuds/findingblissinignorance
Summary: Death was never easy. It wasn’t just the pain or the fear that this was the last time it would happen. It was seeing him. Seeing the anguish in Joe’s eyes as he waited with bated breath for the wounds to heal.A one shot on how Nicky gladly would sacrifice himself to protect Joe and he gets a chance to prove it.
Relationships: Joe | Yusuf Al-Kaysani/Nicky | Nicolò di Genova
Comments: 10
Kudos: 224





	Found Peace in Your Violence

Death was never easy. It wasn’t just the pain or the fear that this was the last time it would happen. It was seeing _him_. Seeing the anguish in Joe’s eyes as he waited with bated breath for the wounds to heal. Nicky never liked seeing him in pain; any kind of pain.

"Stay with me, habibi." Joe murmured softly in Arabic as he lowered himself next to Nicky's now unmoving body. "You must wake up." He held the man's face in his hands, but he couldn’t look at him. The ache in his chest was growing with every second that passed. Nicky finally gasped back to life as his muscles and skin began to knit themselves back together. Joe exhaled the breath he had been holding and continued caressing Nicky’s face. “There you are.”

“Here I am.” Nicky responded in Arabic. “I couldn’t leave you so easily.” His hand reached up to rest on the other man’s arm, seeking comfort in the touch. They stayed there in silence for a moment while Nicky’s wounds finished healing.

“What did you get yourself into this time?” Joe finally asked in English as he gently drew Nicky back against his chest. His arms wrapped around him like a shield.

“Just more of the usual.” Nicky’s head rested back against Joe’s shoulder as he let out a sigh. “Following my destiny directly into a barrage of bullets.”

“And grenades, it seems. I’m not sure that destiny is a good enough answer this time. What happened? Who are they?”

Nicky’s eyes ran over the bodies that surrounded them. “See, I was hoping you could tell me that.” With one final tender touch, Nicky pulled himself away from Joe. “It seems as though they were looking for you.” He went to the man in charge and found a photograph, offering it to Joe. “I told them you’d be here and then I took care of it.”

“Idiot.” Joe chided him softly as he tucked the photo away. He began searching for any indication of who they might have worked for and for any further photographs of himself while Nicky gathered his discarded weapons. “And did you not think it would have been better for you to wait for me?”

“The thought crossed my mind.” Nicky met Joe’s eyes, smirking ever so slightly. His love, however, continued to look unamused. He must have given Joe a real scare this time. “Unfortunately, I could not. The window of opportunity to surprise them was closing and I had to use that to my advantage. It is okay, Joe. It all worked out in the end.”

“And if it hadn’t? If you never came back and I wasn’t here to-”

“It was not my time. Fate put us together, it would not tear us apart like that.”

“I trust me more than I trust fate, Nicky.” Joe let out a heavy sigh and shook his head. “Come here.” Nicky heeded the request and Joe pressed a kiss to his forehead, holding him close with an affectionate hand on his back. “Wait for me next time. Capito, amore mio?” Joe murmured before tilting his head to capture Nicky's lips with his own for a tender kiss.

“Ho capito, cuore mio.” Nicky brushed his thumb across Joe’s cheekbone. He could have stayed like that forever, but he knew now wasn't the time. “There is nothing here. We should get moving, just in case more are on the way.” The pair finally separated so they could exit the building. “We can call Andy and Booker once we are secure. They'll want to hear about this." Nicky spared one last glance back before pushing the fight to the back of his mind. Joe didn’t need to know how close it had been.

Earlier 

Nicky murmured quiet thanks in Ukrainian as he paid for the dessert. A box full of sweet vareniki; something to look forward to sharing with Joe. Out on the street, he breathed in deeply. It was a cool summer evening which usually meant for a relaxing walk back. He hadn’t gotten far, however, when he spotted a couple of men stopping people and asking questions. They weren’t wearing any tactical gear, but it only took one look for Nicky to know they were part of some kind of security team or mercenary group. That never spelled good news. Deciding it was better to not draw attention to himself, he didn’t change course and instead just hoped he could slip by unnoticed.

That wasn’t meant to be.

"Have you seen this man?" The man who stopped him asked in rough Ukrainian as he held out a photograph for Nicky to see. It wasn’t the clearest picture, but he could recognize his dearest Joe anywhere. It seemed as though fate was looking out for them once again. Warning them of the imminent danger. "Any information you have will be helpful. He is very dangerous."

“Is he?” Nicky looked perturbed as he examined the picture. “This man was looking to rent a building from me. I was supposed to meet him tonight.” He frowned as he handed the picture back. “I can tell you where he is going to be.” The conversation went back and forth for a while before they finally let him go on his way. He was unassuming enough that they believed his story and weren't suspicious. Nicky had no time to waste.

Once at the safehouse, he was quick to gather his equipment and head out. Joe wasn’t back yet so he would have to send him a message about what was happening once he was set up. He had given the men an address to an abandoned warehouse that he claimed Joe was trying to rent. It was something that shouldn’t raise too much suspicion, but still would be secluded and give him a vantage point to get an idea of what they were up against.

On the roof of one of the buildings, he had barely finished setting up the long range microphone when the trucks rolled in and they started piling out. Earpiece in and sniper set up, Nicky sent a quick text to Joe with a pinned location.

_Group of about 20. Arriving now. See you soon._

He knew Joe would understand.

"We have to make sure this goes to plan." One of the soldiers said to all the others. He was the same man who had stopped Nicky before and was obviously the leader of this group. "We need to capture him, at any cost. The plan is to knock him out while he is unaware. He will be locked in a room with gas that should knock him right out, but if you need to shoot him, then shoot him. Just get him tied up as soon as you do." Nicky let out a soft curse. He couldn't wait for Joe, not if it risked his capture. This needed to be taken care of now before they were set up and while he still had the element of surprise on his side.

Nicky moved the rifle to his back and climbed down to the ground before rushing quietly toward the building. By now, most of the mercs were inside, but two of them remained outside the door on watch. He considered his options quietly for a moment before unsheathing his sword. Nicky was there in an instant. The sword shone in the light as he slashed the throat of one and whirled around to stab the other. Beyond the door was an empty hallway, but he could hear the sound of talking further down and around the corner. Back against the wall, he waited for his moment to strike. The two guards went down easily and quietly.

Nicky paused at another door, hearing many voices on the other side of it. It had to be where the remaining men were setting their trap. He closed his eyes, preparing himself for the fight to come. With one final heavy exhale, he pushed through the door. The soldiers were quick to react to his appearance, but not quick enough. Nicky had already pulled out his side arm and fired several well placed shots, killing three of them before they even started to fire in return.

Even without someone to watch his back, he made decent work of the soldiers. His movements were quick, fluid, as he moved from slashing to shooting. Using their men as cover from the bullets. Dropping his empty pistol, he picked up one of their discarded weapons to take down more of them when a bullet to the face knocked him down.

"God damn it, it was a trap.” The leader of the group cursed as he looked at his remaining soldiers; there were five of them in total. “We need to find the other one, he’s got to be here somewhere! Shoot him if you have to, he’ll be okay. Just as long as we can capture him." The words were fuzzy, but the bullet hadn’t been enough to kill Nicky. He couldn’t let them get Joe. Nicky was on his feet before he had even finished healing.

"Wait!" He spat out the bullet, the sound of it clattering on the ground was followed by the sound of their guns turning on him. "Why go after him when you've already got me?" They stared agape as he offered out his hands in surrender. He needed to buy time and if that didn’t work… Well, at least it wouldn’t be Joe who was captured.

His hands were bound with zip ties by one of them as the remaining four stayed ready to attack at any moment. “Get moving.” The one in charge prodded Nicky forward once he was sure he was secure. Nicky stumbled a few steps forward and that was when he saw his escape. Stumbling again, Nicky dropped down to one of the bodies laying there, his hands hidden from the soldiers. Someone moved in to yank him back to his feet. Nicky began to chuckle as they nudged him forward again.

“What? What are you laughing about?”

“We are all born to die.” Nicky said in Italian as he held his arms up towards the men. In his hands was a single grenade, pin already pulled. He threw it in the air as they scrambled to get away, but it was too late.

Four of them died instantly. The other gasped for breath, trying to fight back death for as long as he could, but soon he faded as well. Nicky himself stayed alive long enough to see Joe rushing in, scimitar ready to strike. Despite the pain and not knowing if he would come back. Despite the look in Joe’s eyes. Nicky couldn’t help but die with a small smile on his face.

Death was never easy, but Nicolò would gladly suffer endlessly if it meant saving Yusuf.

**Author's Note:**

> Hope you enjoyed! Like everyone else I've been obsessing over The Old Guard lately and hope to write more for it, but I had to get this idea written out first. Also I learned I hate writing action scenes and fights lol


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